Electrical connecter



1933- w. H. HARRINGTON ELECTRICAL CONNEGTER INVENTOR WlLLulAM H. HARRINGTON Filed Jan. 15, 1929 qmum wl Patented 22, 19 33 UNITED STA @FFQE 1,924,936 nnncrmcnr commerce of Connecticut Application January 15, 1929. Serial No. 332,628

Glad.

My invention relates to electrical connecters and more particularly to outlet or plaster box covers and grounding means associated therewith for grounding all the non-current carrying metallic parts.

It is an object of my invention to make an improved and inexpensive heavy duty current installation.

Another object is to make an improved plaster or outlet box cover.

Another object is to provide means for grounding the cable strain relief fitting of a plug'membar which co-operates with a receptacle member in the outlet or plaster box.

Other objects will appear as my invention is described in connection with the accompanying drawing in which Fig. 1 is a side elevation of my improved plug and receptacle invention shown with the plug re moved from the receptacle.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation view of my invention as shown in Fig.1, but with the outer metal parts shown in a section taken on line 2-2 of Fig. 3 which is a plan view of my improved plug and receptacle with the plug inserted and permanently secured. The plaster box cover is shown in dotted lines.

- Referring to the drawing a plug body 1 of insulating material has three contact fingers 2 projecting therefrom, which co-operate with receptacle contacts (not shown) located in openings (not shown) in a conventional type of porcelain or other insulating receptacle 3. These fingers are so arranged in angular relation to each other that they may be pushed into the plug receptacle 3 only when the plug'and receptacle are in a certain position, thus preventing reversal of the polarity of the current in the appliance supplied through the receptacle, by improper insertion of the plug.

A cover 6 formed'of a square metal plate with rounded corners and around central aperture 16 surrounded by a flange 13 formed integral with and turned up from the plate is adapted to fit in the top of a conventional outlet box 15, to which the cover may be held by screws '7 threaded in in turned ears 1'? on the box and through holes 18 in the cover. To facilitate assembling the cover on the box the holes 18 are elongated and enlarged' at one end so that the heads of the securing screws 7 may pass therethrough and so that upon clockwise rotation of the cover the small end of the hole will be caught under the screw head and the cover thus will be held on the outlet box.

The receptacle 3 is supported in a U saddle 4 which is held securely on outlet box cover 6 by screws 8 threaded in out-turned cars 10 of the saddle and also threaded in out-turned lugs 12 of the outlet box cover flange 13. The saddle 4 lies in the plateaperture 16 and hence the receptacle 3 supported thereby lies in the aperture and outlet box.

To improve the appearance and to protect the live parts of the apparatus a face plate 20 is secured to the outlet or plaster box cover 6 by screws 21 threaded in out-turned cars 22 on the plaster box cover flange 13. The face plate has a round central aperture registering with the aperture 16 of the outlet box cover in order that the head of the porcelain receptacle may project thcrethrough.

Adjacent the edges of the aperture in the :face plate are two diametrically opposed slots 23 into which tongues 24 downwardly projecting from the ring 250i a cable strain relief fitting 26 on the plug 1, are adapted to extend. Beneath the slots 23 and in the path of movement of the tongues are downwardly bent contact fingers 26' secured in contact with the under side of the face plate 20. As the tongues pass through the slots they rub against and make contact with the contact fingers.

' Since it is customary to ground the outlet box, it will now be apparent that by using my above described construction all the non-=current carry ing metal parts, namely the outlet box, its cover,

the face plate and the strain relief fitting, will be grounded. Specifically, cover 6 is grounded by its connection with the outlet box, the face plate is grounded by its connection with the cover and the strain fitting is grounded by its tongues contacting with the fingers of the face plate.

If it is desired to maintain the plug parmament ly in current carrying condition, the strain relief fitting may be formed with diametrically opposed laterally extending arms 28 integral therewith; These arms may have apertures in their ends registering with the screw hole apertures of the face plate securing screws 21, so that these screws may serve to secure both the plug and face plate to the outlet box cover.

When the apparatus is assembled as described and as shown in Figure 2 and with the outlet box 15 depressed in the wall as usual, plaster may be moulded about the flange 1 3 oi the outlet box cover making a neat and finishedloog construction.

Many changes and incations within the its lit

scope of my invention will occur to those skilled in the art.

I claim:

1. An electrical connecter comprising a plug, a Y plug receptacle, a grounded face plate having a finger thereon, a strain relief fitting on said plug having means thereon co-operating with said finger to ground said fitting.

2. An electrical connecter comprising a grounded face plate, a connecter plug and socket therefor, a strain relief fitting on said plug, a tongue on said fitting for grounding it.

3. An electrical connecter comprising a connecter plug, a receptacle therefor, a grounded face plate associated with said receptacle, slots in said plate with fingers therebelow and a strain relief fitting on said plug having tongues adapted to project through said slots and contact with said fingers to ground said fitting.

4. An electrical connecter comprising a cover for an outlet box or. the like formedof an apertured plate having a flange surrounding the aperture, asaddle supported from said flange and de pending in said aperture, a receptacle housing contacts and supported by said saddle, an apermes es tured face plate secured to said cover, said plate having slots therein with contact fingers therebelow, in combination with a connecter plug having contacts co-operating with said receptacle contacts, a strain relief fitting on said plug, said fitting having tongues adapted to slide in said slots and to tacts mac-operating with said receptacle contacts,

a strain relief fitting on said plug, said fitting having tongues adapted to slide in said slots and to co-operate with said fingers whereby the fitting may be grounded.

WHLIAM H. HARRINGTON. 

